Brake-slack adjuster.



Patented Sept. 8, 1914.

J. S. HARDING.

BRAKE SLACK ADJUSTER. APPLIGATION FILED JUNE 13, 1913.

FIG. 1.

FIG 2 WITNESSES THE NORRIS PETERS 60., PHOTO-LITHQ. WASHINGTON. 0. cv

.710 all whom it may concern UNITED STATES, Parana onn cE.

JESSE s. HARD ING, on STOUGI-ITON,MASSACHUSETTS; jassreivoa or ONE-HALF 'ro CHARLES 1). DYER, or WHIT MAN,'MASSACHUSETTS.

BRAKE-SLACK ADJUSTER.

Y Specification of Letters Patent. 1 l Batented' Se t 8 1914.

Application filed. me 13, 1913. Serial no. 973,433.

Be it known that =I, Jnss1i S. HARniNq, a citizen of the United States, residing at Stoughton, countyfof Norfolk, State of Massachusetts, have invented an Improvement in Brake-Slack Adjusters, of which the following description, inconnection withthe accompanying drawing, 1s a specificat on, like characters on the drawing representing likeparts My invention relates to, an automatic brake slack adjusterfor automaticallytaking up slack in a brakegear dueto the wearing away of the brake shoes,and 1t for its principal object to provide an improved device of this type which can readily be applied to the brake gear now commonly used with comparatively small structural changes.

: The objects and nature of the invention: will be hereinafter more fully disclosedand the novel features will be pointed out in-the claims.

In the drawing:

view on the line 4. i of Fig. 3. v Referring to the dra'wingvin detail, 1 in- 'dicates one of the trucks of a car having the wheels 2 and 3 to which thebrake shoes 4 and 5 are to be applied. These brake shoes are carriedby brake beams 6 and 7 which in turn are supported in the usual;

way from the truck.

when the brakes are released.

The brakes are operated through the usual live and dead levers 10 and 11, connected by rod 12, the dead lever 11 being pivotally connected at one end to the truck as at 16, and the live lever being connected by connections 14 and 15 to a power piston operating in a cylinder 13 all as usual in air brake mechanism; p

In my improved mechanism Ipro'vide a take-up device between each brake head" and the truck by which lost motion due to the wear of the brake shoes is automatically taken up, and I also provide an automatic Figure 1 is a sectional, view taken substantially on the longitudinal center line of a truck equipped with my devicetFig. 2 is a sectional view onan en-; larged scale showing the take-up device, Fig. 3 is a detail sectional View ofthead justable connecting rod; Fig. 4: is a sectional.

is always preserved betweenthe live and dead 'l'eve'rsand the power piston to properly'foperate the brake mechanism, This take-up devicecomprises a take-up member 1 8 which is sustained'at one end in a support in the forxnof a bracket 19 attached to the truck, said take-up member being slidablymounted in saidbracket and provided movement. ,The other end of the take-up member is slida-bly supported by a bracket 20 whichis rigid "with thebrake head, it being herein shown as securedto the brake beam, and is provided with ratchet teeth that cooperate with a tooth 22 on the bracket 20.

'The' take-up 'memberis held down in engagement with tooth 22 by the spring 28 and pusher 24. The tooth 22 on the brake'memher is preferably provided by securing a hardened steel insert tot-he bracket as in Fig. 2. Any equivalents-pawl vandratchet device may be substituted to connect the brake beam and the take-upmember, but I prefer that herein shown. a

The connecting rod 12 is made automatr cally adjustableas shown in the drawing and comprising two telescopin'gparts the inner of which is provided with ratchetfteeth which take-up device in the rod 12 which compensates for the ohangein the relative position the brake headsdue to such wear of the brake, shoes, so that the correct relation with adjustable stops 21 and 21 to limit its are engaged .byaspring pressed ratchet- I toothed block 25 whichisreceived in a recess in the outer member as clearly shown; in Fig. 3. I fthe brakes are hung inside, the connecting rod is, of course, modified to withstand compression. It is, of course, im-

material whether the adjustment is'made in the connecting rod or between the operating piston and live lever.

The connecting rod and the stops on the take-up member are so adjusted that when the operating piston 'is'atone'aend of its stroke and the brakes are released one stop I on each rod is engaged with the bracket 19. and when near the other end of its stroke, and the brakes are applied, the other end is near to or in engagement with the said bracket. 9 j l The operation of the device is as follows :When power is applied to the live lever the brake shoes are drawn against the wheels, as is obvious upon [inspection of Fig. 1. Owing to the special form of r'atchet,the

Q I I 1,109,837

the brake shoes become worn, however, the increased movement which is necessary to bring the brake shoes into braking engagement with the wheels brings the stop 21 into contact with the bracket 19 thus preventing further movement of said take-up member, and during the continued movement of the brake beam the tooth 22 carried over into the next notch of the take'aip member.

lVhen thev brake is released the springs 8 and 9 move the brake beams away from the wheels and because of the pawl and ratchetl connections between the brake beams and take-up members, the latterare carried backwardly with the brake beams, the stops 21 limiting such movement of thetake-up and brake beam. As the operating piston resumes its initial position the connecting rod 12 will be automatically shortened by the two parts thereof telescoping together, the bloc]; 25 operating to hold said parts in their newly adjusted position. Thisautomat-ic adjustment will take place as often as it is necessary to compensate for the wearing away of the brake shoes.

hile I have illustrated one embodiment of my invention I do not wish to be limited to the structural features shown.

Having described my invention, what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent is: l

1. In combination, a truck, a pair of brake beams, a live lever connected to one brake beam, a dead lever connected to the other brake beam, a separate automatically adjustable take-up device for each brake beam, each take up device having a support forone end thereof in which limited reciprocatory 'movement is permitted, the other end of the take up device having a connection with the adjacent brake beam whereby these two parts will normally reciprocate together but upon excessive movementof the brake beam in one direction will take new positions relative to each other.

2. In combination with a truck, a pair of C opiei of this patent may be obtained for live cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents,

brake heads each side of the truck, a live ,lever connected to one brake head, a dead Zlever connected to the other brake head, a separate automatically adjustable take-up :device for each brake head, a bracket for each take up device depending from the truck and in which one end of the take up ,device is slidably mounted for limited re i ciprocatory movement relative to the truck, the other end of the take up device having a pawl and ratchet connection with the adjaf'cent brake head whereby these two parts will normally reciprocate together but upon excessive movement of the brake head in one direction will take new positions relative to each other. 3. In combination, a truclna'pair of brake ;bea'ms, a live lever connected to one brake beam, "adead lever connected to the other brake beam, an automatically adjustable rod 1 connecting the levers, a separate automatically adjustable take-up device for each brake'beam, each take-up device having a support for one end thereof in which limited reciprocatory movement is permitted, the

other end of the take-updevice having a connection with the adjacent brake beam, whereby these two parts will normally reciprocate together, but upon excessive movement of the brake beam in one direction will take new positions relative to each other.

4. In combination, a truck, a brake head provided with a brake shoe, a take up memher, a support depending from the truck for one end of said take up device, in which support the takeup device has limited reciprocatory movement, the other end of the take up device having a connection with the brake head whereby these two parts will normally reciprocate together, but upon eX- cessive movement of the brake head in one direction will take new positions relative to each other.

In testimony whereof, I have signed my name to this specification, in the presence of two subscribing witnesses.

JESSE S. HARDING.

Witnesses:

Gnoizon E. Jo'snrn, PATRICK, MADDEN.

wasnmgwn, D. 0. 

